Fallout
by Ninja-Consultant
Summary: Following the events of Fugue State, Superboy and everyone must deal with what they saw in Match's mind.  A three part story.  Completed.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: DC Comics owns all rights to the characters within. They are used without permission and not meant to infringe on copyrights or meant to generate income.

Also, if you have not read my other stories, it would be helpful to do so before reading this one. The chronology goes: Brothers in Arms, Where Do We Go From Here, Tragedies of the Past, Betrayal From Within, Future Sins, Reestablishing Bonds, Parents and Children, New Allies, Rivals or Friends, Public Enemy Number One, Double Date, Mind Games, Solar Complications, Mentors and Pupils, Brother Against Brother, Calm Before the Storm, Opening Moves, Isolation, The Great Father and Son Contest, and Fugue State.

Fallout, chapter 1

Location: the JLA Watchtower, medical bay

Max was restless. They insisted on keeping him overnight for observation even though it was highly unlikely that Desaad would immediately attempt another telepathic assault. Even if he did, Max had reinforced him mental shields with the Martian Manhunter's assistance.

No, he knew the real reason he was being held here. He didn't blame them for doing it; it made more sense to keep him in an accessible place for everyone to come to, rather than force everyone to trek out to the Kent's farm.

A shadow fell over him, and he looked up.

"Hello, Batman," Match said. "I've been expecting you."

Location: the Kent's farm

"Thanks for helping me clean up," Conner told Dan. "I wasn't really trying to keep everything spotless with what happened to Max."

"It's okay," Dan said. "I want him to be happy when he comes back, and he'd just quietly clean if he came back. Let's save him some work, right?"

"Yeah," Conner said.

There was a pause.

"What's on your mind?" Dan asked. "I know you want to ask me something; you've got that look on your face."

"Are you okay with everything you saw? It was a lot for me to take in, and I was there for a good portion of those events. I know Max can be kind of hard to deal with."

"Why do you say that?" Dan asked. "How's he difficult, other than being serious all the time?"

"Maybe it's because I live with him. He insists on keeping this room super clean and wakes up every morning at 3 AM to do his exercise routine. He's very quiet, but sometimes my super-hearing kicks in and I hear him get out of bed."

"So, you want your own room."

Conner frowned. "When you put it that way...yes. I think having my own room would be great."

"I thought your complaints were going to be something other than sharing a room. I thought there was going to be some deep emotional thing that was bothering you."

"You make it sound so silly. Also, nice try on avoiding my question. Max has rubbed off on you."

Dan chuckled. "Yeah. I know he had stuff he didn't want to talk about. I also knew he used to be a bad guy so there were things he did that he wasn't proud of."

Location: the JLA Watchtower, medical bay

"We need to talk," Batman said.

"Yes," Match agreed. "What do you want to know?"

"How many?"

"Thirty-eight. Four under the Agenda, and thirty-four under the Groups."

"That's high."

"It's very low given the types of missions I was assigned."

"Were there any civilians?"

Match looked away. "There was one, under the Agenda. Tana Moon."

"I've read the reports; they indicated that Amanda Spence was responsible."

"She was the one who pushed the button, but I was involved in the operation."

"How many if you remove ones you weren't directly responsible for?"

"Twenty-three."

"I see."

There was a pause.

Match gave Batman a wan smile. "This is where you fire me as a candidate to succeed you. It's expected."

"I'm withdrawing my offer to train you for that until I've fully digested the new information I have."

"I don't think that this is really a surprise to you."

"It's not, but you're being the End is."

"Ah. You're worried that power corrupts."

"Your own personal power and skills coupled with the End's resources is a matter for concern. Adding it to my own resources before ascertaining that would be unwise."

Location: the Kent's farm

"Does seeing it change anything?" Conner repeated.

"It doesn't change the way I feel," Dan said. "I may treat him a bit differently. It'd be hard not to."

"I'm going to have to give you more personal time together, aren't I?"

"I wouldn't mind it, but I think we'll still spend a lot of time with each other. Why the concern?"

Conner made a face. "Even though I complain about the little things, it's been really great having Max here. I get to have one of my best friends and a brother at the same time. I was kind of aimless before he got here, and I'm a lot more focused."

"You make it sound like he's going to run off at any time."

"I knew he didn't have a pleasant upbringing, but I didn't realize how bad it was. I don't want him to get hurt anymore."

"So you're the protective big brother, and I'm the guy who's all wrong for your little brother?" Dan clenched his fists.

Conner laughed. "It isn't like that. I know you and how you're good for him. It's just that I don't know what he wants or expects. I'm still relatively new to being an older brother, and I want to look out for him."

Location: the JLA Watchtower, medical bay

"Tim does make more sense for you as a successor," Match told Batman. "Richard, as well. I think at least one of them could be persuaded if you tried."

"If I have to persuade them, then they don't want the job," Batman said.

"Don't be foolish. Laying out the benefits and drawbacks for them isn't forcing them into something against their will."

"If I did that, they'd feel pressured to accept."

"Is it any better than having them feel resentful over your choice of me?"

"They were merely surprised."

"Surprise passes. You should have discussed it with them."

"It would be unfair to put the burden of my mantle on them."

"Unfair for you or them?"

There was a pause.

"I believe that Clark would like to talk to you," Batman said.

"I'm ready to see him. Hopefully, he won't be too annoyed with me."

Location: the Kent's farm

"I'm glad that you're looking out for Max," Dan said. "I'm doing that too."

"There's a big difference between him on a mission and him not on one," Conner said. "He's tough as nails in the field, but almost fragile off of it."

"How so?"

"He was terrified that the Kents were going to throw him out when he first came to live here."

"What? He thought the Kents would do that?"

"Yeah."

"He's not used to being loved."

"You're...right. He doesn't understand that some people will unconditionally accept him."

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Any and all comments welcome!


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: DC Comics owns all rights to the characters within. They are used without permission and not meant to infringe on copyrights or meant to generate income.

Fallout, chapter 2

Location: the JLA Watchtower, medical bay

"Hello, Clark," Max said. "Would you mind getting me a glass of water? I'm not supposed to get out of bed or use my powers without supervision."

Clark brought over a glass of water and watched silently while Max drank it.

"Thank you," Max said. "What can I do for you?"

"I can't believe you did that in my parent's barn," Clark said.

Max blushed. "I don't think we need to go into any further discussion about that. It's private."

"See what you went through...it brings it home that I don't know much about you. We're family, but it's like there's a barrier between us. That's my fault, and I want to fix it."

"It's not entirely your fault," Max corrected. "I'm not very talkative. In fact, I would have preferred for many of those things to remain secret; I had no desire to burden you with them."

"It's not a burden. You shouldn't think of it that way. Looking at the way I treated you...I wouldn't blame you if you hated me."

Max blinked. "Why would you think something like that?"

"I've been hard on Conner, and I've been ever harder on you. I haven't trusted you when you didn't do anything to deserve it. I've been thoughtless too; I should have given you a Kryptonian name. I've held you at arms length when I shouldn't have."

"You won't win any parenting awards, but you're not my father. I don't have one."

"You're part of my family. I want us to be closer."

Max stared at him. "You've seen what I've done. Can you accept that?"

Clark looked sad. "I'll try to. It's still new, and I'm trying to get over the shock of it."

"Can you accept my relationship with Dan?"

"What makes you think I don't?"

"Your reactions. I know that you're very traditional, and it can be difficult to accept."

"I guess I just thought you'd be into the same things as Conner. You know, girls, pizza, that awful music..."

"Conner and I both had unusual upbringings, but he's been exposed to 'regular' things more than I have. There weren't many members of the Agenda or Groups that wanted anything to do with me. At least, nothing pleasant."

"I know that. It's just very hard for me to understand you."

There was a pause.

Max spoke first. "Look at me."

"What?"

"Look at my eyes. Of whom do they remind you?"

Clark stared at Max, not quite getting what he was saying. Then, it dawned upon him. It was the look of someone who had seen and experienced the worst of humanity. He knew someone else who had that look.

"Batman," he answered.

Max gave him a sad smile. "Exactly. Conner has a joy and sparkle in his eyes that I never had. I hope he never loses it."

"Does it hurt to be around him?"

"Sometimes. He's a constant reminder of what I might have been. Still, the occasional pain is more than countered by having him as a brother."

There was another pause. This time, Clark broke the silence.

"You can go home now. The doctors say it's okay."

"It'll be good to return."

"I want things to be better between us," Clark said suddenly. "I may not be good at expressing it, but I do really want that."

"I know."

-----

Any and all comments welcome!


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: DC Comics owns all rights to the characters within. They are used without permission and not meant to infringe on copyrights or meant to generate income.

Fallout, chapter 3

Location: the Kent's farm, Conner and Max's bedroom

In the middle of the night, Max sat up in bed and exclaimed, "I'm an idiot!"

This woke Conner. "What's going on? What's wrong?"

"I need to get to the Slab right away."

"Hold on, I'll come with you."

Max contacted the DEO to let them know they'd be arriving soon.

Location: the Slab

"What's going on here?" the warden demanded.

"I need to see Inertia, immediately," Match ordered.

The warden looked at Superboy, and Kon nodded. He didn't know what Match was up to, but he trusted that it was both important and urgent.

The warden gave the orders, and Inertia was brought to them.

"What's going on?" he asked, holding his hand out in greeting.

Match's eyes narrowed at this. Moving swiftly, he took the warden's gun and shot Inertia in the leg. The teen shrieked in pain and fell to the floor, writhing in pain.

"What are you doing?" the warden demanded.

Kon went to take the gun away, but found himself anchored to the ground. Match had immobilized him.

"Where's Inertia?" Match demanded.

"Are you crazy?" the warden shouted. "You just shot him!"

Match ignored the warden. "I want two things from you: return to your natural form and give me Inertia's location. Failure to comply...you don't want to know what will happen if you don't."

Kon shivered at the lack of emotion in Match's voice. He was being deadly serious.

Inertia seemed to think so as well. The teen's body shimmered and revealed a featureless humanoid form. Kon and the warden gave exclamations of surprise.

"My second request," Match ordered.

The shapeshifter gave him coordinates.

Match returned the warden's gun. "Take him away."

"How'd you know?" Kon asked, able to move again. "I couldn't tell the difference."

"He held out the wrong hand," Match said, absently. "I'm going to request backup."

"Who took him captive? How'd this person manage to break him out of the Slab? Why him?"

"It was Desaad," Match replied. "It's an attempt to either lure me into a trap or to use Thaddeus to cause me pain."

"What are you going to do?"

"I know what it's like to be abandoned; I won't do that to him. Desaad has left me few choices."

"I'm coming with you. You'll need my help."

"Be ready to leave in two minutes. I'm calling for backup."

Location: at the coordinates

"Are you ready?" Match asked.

Kon looked at his brother. He was in full mission-mode, without a trace of hesitation or emotion. It scared him sometimes to see Match like this.

"Let's go," Superboy nodded.

The two entered the building. Inertia was being suspended from the ceiling by a cable in the center of the otherwise featureless room.

"You came!" the blond teen called out. "Help!"

Match scanned the room but saw nothing that looked like a trap. He cautiously advanced on Inertia. Nothing happened. He gestured for Kon to come up to them.

"Be prepared to shield us," Match told him. "I'm going to get Inertia."

Match flew up and examined the cable. It appeared normal. He severed it and took Inertia to the ground. There weren't any traps that were activated by freeing him.

"Untie my hands, and we can get out of here!" Inertia urged. "I don't want to wait around for that creepy guy!"

"What did he do to you?" Match asked as he untied the teen.

"He gave me life," Inertia claimed as he produced a knife with a green blade and ran it into Match's stomach.

Match gasped. Kon sagged to his knees, a feeling of weakness coming over him. The knife was made out of Kryptonite.

A boom tube opened, and a figure was shoved out of it before it closed. The real Inertia gasped at the scene before him. A holographic representation of Desaad's head appeared.

"Well done!" he crowed. "You did exactly as I anticipated!"

Match looked at Inertia with glazed eyes and concentrated. With the last remnants of his power, he broke Inertia's power inhibitor. Inertia sprang into action and rained a flurry of supersonic blows on his impersonator. The fake Inertia fell to the ground, reverting to its true form that was identical to the other doppelganger. Inertia went over to Match.

"Grife," he breathed as he saw the blade sticking in him and the blood flowing from the wound.

Match weakly chuckled. "Those 30th century curses always made me laugh."

"This isn't funny!" Inertia shouted. "What do I...this knife needs to go."

The knife was removed from the premises, and Inertia was back in less than half a second.

"The next step is to apply pressure," Inertia reminded himself aloud.

He pressed his hands to the wound, trying to staunch the flow of blood. He was surprised when another pair of hands joined his; Superboy had recovered enough to help.

"What do we do next?" Inertia asked.

"I'll bind his wounds with my powers," Kon said. "That'll give our backup enough time to get here."

As if on cue, Superman and the Martian Manhunter burst in.

"I'll take him to the hospital," Superman said.

"I'll handle things here," J'onn told them

Location: the JLA Watchtower, medical bay

"You're getting to be a regular visitor," Kon said. "Maybe you shouldn't be so reckless."

Match looked a bit pale. "I suppose I'm indebted to Desaad's twisted nature. A gut wound is painful and takes a while to be lethal; a stab in the chest would have been considerably more deadly."

"You know how to put someone at ease."

"I'm sorry; I know you don't like me being so clinical about these things."

"You've been critically wounded, so I'll let it slide this time."

"Please move the communications screen this way. There's something I need to do."

Location: the Slab

Inertia was being moved. He wasn't sure where he was going, but he knew that the warden was not happy about it. The man had told him that he'd be back.

After being transferred to an armored car, he felt a beam of light envelop his body. He looked at the policemen accompanying him, but they didn't seem surprised.

When Inertia's vision cleared, he saw Match and the Martian Manhunter.

"Hello, Thaddeus," Match welcomed him. "This is the JLA Watchtower. The rest of your detention time will be served here."

"Huh?" he asked. "What do you mean?"

"The Slab wasn't safe anymore," the Martian Manhunter said. "We've arranged to give you quarters here. You won't have full access to everything here, but you'll have much more freedom than at the Slab."

"Think of it as being under house arrest," Match said.

"This is a bit much to take in," Thaddeus said.

"The Martian Manhunter will show you around and explain the rules," Match said. "You will be under scrutiny here, but that will lessen when others learn to trust you."

J'onn and Thaddeus went off. A moment later, Batman stepped from the shadows.

"I've already told you that I don't agree with this," he told Match.

"I know."

"Did you consider that your own experiences are influencing you? You were trusted and now you're quick to trust?"

"Of course my experiences influenced me. It would be foolish to deny that. Still, he had the opportunity to run away, but he stayed to help. That earned him the benefit of the doubt."

"How are you feeling?"

"Physically, I won't be at my peak for a time, but I'm fully capable of providing support."

"Excellent. While you're still here, I'd like you to work on the Gathering Storm project."

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Any and all comments welcome!


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